When Planets Softly Collide
by Jagged Epiphany
Summary: One shot. Post Hogwarts. Alicia Spinnet is an Auror who has just been contacted by Warrington, who claims to have information for her regarding the Death Eaters. A clandestine meeting is arranged. Enjoy!


Disclaimer: Everything belongs to people who aren't me.

A/N: The idea for this has been floating around in my brain for a while. It's different to anything I've written so far. It was largely inspired by the one-shots of HPfan000. This features Alicia Spinnet like most of my stuff, but don't expect it to be like Old Faces or Sugar and Spice. Also, don't complain about the pairing. If you don't like the idea of Alicia/Slytherin simply stop reading right now. Alicia/George is still my fave ship, but variety is the spice of life and I like stretching myself as a writer. That's why I'm here, really. So let me know how I did.

This is my first M-rated fic. Rated M for swearing and general themes.

Hang on. Almost forgot to add that the title of this is from a poem by an Australian woman named Jill Jones. It doesn't have a whole lot of relevance to the story…it's just a damn cool title. A bit of the poem will be at the end of the story.

**When Planets Softly Collide**

The early morning fog was just beginning to clear and London was stirring. People on their way to work headed for the nearest Tube station, school children congregated in giggling huddles on the street corners, shops were opening for business, car horns were already beeping in discontented bursts. Two old women shuffled by, their empty shopping bags swinging from their elbows. A jogger dodged around them, his perspiration collecting down the front of his shirt. A stray cat emerged from the alley and sniffed the air in search of its breakfast.

Alicia Spinnet watched all of this from the window of her flat. It was just like any other day to them all. The Muggles went about their business as they did everyday. None of them knew that they'd all been saved exactly two years ago. The name Voldemort meant nothing to them. Nor did the name Harry Potter. No one stopped to mark the anniversary of the Dark Lord's defeat.

It was a different story in the wizarding world. Today was an official holiday. It had been known as Harry Potter Day for a while, but he quickly put a stop to that. It had become more of a day for remembrance than celebration. People traditionally lit candles for all those who had died in the confrontation. That night Alicia would light two candles for her parents.

Jeremiah and Iliana Spinnet were Aurors during Voldemort's first reign of terror. Upon Dumbledore's personal request, they had come out of retirement to bolster the fight against Voldemort and had been murdered by Death Eaters only weeks before it all ended. Alicia had been in her second year of Auror training when it had happened. She'd tried to help out as best she could, but she had been too green to do much damage.

Alicia had finished her training a few months ago and was now working under Nymphadora Tonks monitoring the comings and goings of Voldemort's old followers. Well, the few followers who hadn't been killed or thrown in Azkaban.

Opening the window so the Prophet owl could get in, Alicia slouched off to get her breakfast and coffee. Despite the fact that it was a public holiday she still had to go into Headquarters. Aurors didn't tend to get holidays.

Alicia turned on the kettle and grabbed some eggs out of the fridge. Truthfully, she wasn't looking forward to going to work. Two weeks ago a trio of Aurors on a routine assignment had been ambushed and killed. No one had been able to work out what had happened, but the rumours around the department were that the Death Eaters had a new leader. Half the department was trying to find some answers whilst the other half did their best to keep the incident from being leaked to the public. The last thing anyone wanted was a panic after two years of relative peace.

An owl came swooping into the kitchen and broke Alicia's train of thought. It wasn't the Prophet owl she'd been expecting. The large barn owl circled, dropped a letter on the table then swept back out of the room. Alicia sighed and put the eggs by the stove. Early morning owls were never a good thing. Considering what had been happening at work, she wouldn't be surprised if she were being whisked off on some special assignment.

"Where will it be today?" she asked herself as she grabbed the envelope. "Peru? Latvia? Botswana? Middle of the Amazon? Can't send me to Paris or Rome, can they?"

Alicia tore open the envelope and yanked out the letter. God. When had the Ministry started using such fancy parchment? She unfolded it and began to read.

_Miss Spinnet,_

_I hope you don't mind if I skip the small talk and formalities. I have information for you. It is regarding the identity of the newest Death Eater leader. You are the only person to whom I will give this sensitive information. If you want it you will meet me tonight at the Muggle nightclub Magenta at eleven precisely. Do not be late as I am a busy man. If you tell anyone else about this the deal is off and you get nothing. I am certain you can appreciate the risk I am taking. Kindly dispose of this letter when you have finished reading it._

_Cordially,_

_C. A. Warrington_

_P.S. Wear something hot or they won't let you into the club._

Alicia's knuckles turned white as she hung onto the table for dear life. The same Warrington she had gone to Hogwarts with? Son of the convicted Death Eater? What could he possibly want? Alicia examined the signature at the bottom. She had no way of telling if it was really from him. All she remembered about him from school was that he played Chaser and his first name was Christopher. Obviously that wasn't a lot to go on.

They hadn't covered anything like this during Auror training. Well, there was that rule against negotiating with criminals and suspects. Technically Warrington wasn't a criminal or a suspect though. If he could be believed, he was a potential informant. Plenty of other Aurors had shadowy informants. Why couldn't she have one, too?

Alicia read through the letter once more, committing the details to memory. She went over to the sink and muttered a spell to set fire to the edge of the letter. She dropped the parchment and watched it turn to ash, which she washed away.

Shaking, Alicia set about making herself breakfast. She should really tell Tonks that she had been approached by someone on their watch-list. There was no way Warrington would find out if she told someone. Telling Tonks, though, would mean she'd have to share the glory with someone else. It would be a lot more spectacular if she alone managed to expose the identity of the next despotic psychopath before they could do any real damage.

Alicia Spinnet: Order of Merlin, First Class.

Had a nice ring to it.

xxxxx

_Wear something hot or they won't let you into the club._

What exactly was that supposed to mean? Alicia stared at the array of clothes she had thrown haphazardly on her bed. She had quite a variety of clothing thanks to her Auror assignments. She'd been in all sorts of places and situations in the few months that she'd been an active Auror. The importance of camouflage had been drilled into her all through training. It would be better if she blended in with the other women at the nightclub.

Alicia shrugged and slipped on a short pink skirt. An Auror wouldn't be caught dead in it, which was precisely the point. She pulled on a white camisole top then hurried off to do her hair.

Fred and George would have fits if they found out she was going to meet an ex-Slytherin alone. Angelina would just slap her outright. They always seemed to forget that she was one of only a handful of people chosen to begin Auror training this decade. At Hogwarts she may have been a little soft, but she could take care of herself very well now. Warrington was about to find out as much.

Alicia secured her hair up with a few pins then glanced at her watch. Fuck. How could it already be ten minutes to eleven?

Punctuality never had been her strong point.

Slipping on a pair of heels and snatching up a handbag, she closed her eyes and Apparated to an alley she knew that was near the club. She'd heard about Magenta from the other young women who lived in her block of flats, but she'd never agreed to go with them. In fact, tonight would be the first time she'd ever been to a Muggle club. They weren't really her thing at all.

London was always alive on a Friday night. As Alicia made her way to Magenta she passed many other young revellers out in search of chemically induced enlightenment. Some already seemed to be half way there.

"Holy hell," Alicia hissed as she rounded a corner. The line into Magenta was huge. Half of London seemed to be waiting to get inside the club. It was going to take at least an hour if she joined the queue.

"If your name's on the list come to the front of the line!" shouted a muscular bouncer.

Worth a try, Alicia thought. She approached the bouncer, doing her best to appear as if she belonged there.

"Name, baby?"

"Alicia Spinnet."

To her surprise, the bouncer stepped aside without even checking his clipboard. "Right. Mr Warrington is waiting for you on the top level. 'Ave a good night."

"Er, thank you." Alicia shot the people in the queue a smug look then proceeded into the club.

She walked through the hoards of sweaty people with a purpose. That was the trick to navigating nightclubs, Katie had once told her. If you look like you're off to meet with someone important, you're less likely to be hassled. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to work too well because she was still pinched and ogled as she slid by.

The thick beats of the music reverberated up the length of her spine and the strobe lights made it hard for her to see where she was going. The bouncer had said Warrington was waiting on the top level so she headed towards the staircase. Embarrassingly, she had to step over a couple that was snogging at the bottom of the stairs. To make matters worse, she almost twisted her ankle on the way up.

"Damn lights," she muttered.

A plaque that read 'VIP' hung from a velvet rope at the top of the stairs. Another burly man asked for her name and this time he looked her up and down before letting her through. He instructed her to head for the back corner where Mr Warrington would be waiting for her.

This level of the nightclub was much more subdued. For starters, the music wasn't as loud and no one was dancing. Black leather sofas were huddled around coffee tables where people sat and sipped cocktails. It was difficult to be sure in the low light, but this level seemed to be entirely populated by beautiful women and wealthy looking men.

Alicia made her way slowly to the back of the club and the sound of the music faded gradually. She deliberately walked slowly to give the impression that she couldn't care less about the meeting. In reality, her newly developed danger instincts were tingling. The whole situation smacked of a set-up. Why would a proud pure-blood like Warrington voluntarily be seen in a Muggle establishment? Why did he pick her, the least experienced Auror in the department, to give the information to?

How the hell did he even _get_ the information? Alicia had taken a quick look through his file at work and all indications were that he was no longer a part of the Death Eater movement. Kingsley Shacklebolt had tailed him for a few months after the war then deemed him a low risk entity. She trusted Shacklebolt implicitly, so what was Warrington up to?

In the end it wasn't him she spotted first. To begin with all she could see was a blonde woman sitting astride someone's lap. Somehow she didn't need to see the man's face to know it was Warrington. Alicia stood there, getting angrier by the second. When the couple finally came up for air the woman spotted her.

"You didn't say you were inviting a friend," she said, blinking up at Alicia with large blue eyes.

"She's a business associate, not a playmate for you," said a smooth, obsidian voice.

The blonde climbed off her partner with a wistful sigh and straightened her cocktail dress. Alicia recognised Warrington immediately. He had the same dark, hard features that she remembered from school. He was wearing black trousers and a well-fitting dark blue shirt. Alicia immediately felt like an idiot in her costume. He had come dressed for a business meeting whilst she looked like a prostitute. They hadn't even spoken to each other and he already had the upper hand.

Warrington handed the blonde woman her handbag as a dismissal. "Thank you, that will be all, Betsy."

"Bethany," she corrected cheerfully.

"Right. Get any drink you want from the bar and tell Sam it's on me."

"He's a right gentleman, isn't he?" Bethany cooed, turning to Alicia for support.

"Oh yeah, he's all class."

Bethany sashayed off to get her free drink and Warrington and Alicia were left to stare at each other. "Take a seat," he finally offered, gesturing to the spot next to him on the sofa.

Alicia sat down, as far away from him as she could without actually having to sit on the arm of the sofa. Her legs stuck to the leather and she tugged her skirt down uselessly. Warrington watched this with silent interest. Alicia turned red under the scrutiny.

"What was that about?" she demanded. "It wasn't very professional or discreet."

"You mean Bethany? We just lost track of time."

Alicia narrowed her eyes. "Don't try that with me. You knew exactly what time it was and you told me to be here at precisely eleven. What was that little demonstration supposed to prove? That there are still women in the world willing to debase themselves enough to sleep with you? I couldn't care less about your sex life."

Warrington just smirked in wry amusement. "My, you don't waste any time do you? Don't Aurors bother to teach their children manners? You clearly inherited the arrogance."

Alicia was half way out of her seat before she realised she was being played. She was better than that. She had a certificate hanging in her cubicle at Headquarters that said she was better than that. Christopher Warrington was not going to outwit her.

"I'm here for the name, not the small talk," she said crisply. "Let's get on with it."

"Would you care for a drink?"

"I don't drink on the job."

"Pity." Warrington waved over a bartender who was wandering around collecting empty glasses. "I'll have a scotch and the lady will have a martini."

"Certainly, Mr Warrington."

"I told you I don't drink when I'm working," Alicia said irritably as the barman bustled off. "Enough of this. Give me the name of the man who is coordinating the Death Eaters."

"Ah. You naturally assume it's a man. That's very interesting. Didn't get along with daddy as a child?"

Alicia calmly folded her hands across her lap, feeling as though she was gradually gaining some sort of control over the situation. "Don't waste my time with your armchair psychology. We both know that Death Eaters are more likely to listen to a _Muggle-born_ fanatic than they are a woman."

Warrington nodded approvingly. "I guess they did teach you something at Auror training."

"Coincidentally, they also taught me to identify a load of bollocks when I see it. You have no information for me whatsoever," Alicia said.

"Why would you think that?"

She was interrupted by the barman, who placed their drinks on the coffee table in front of them then scurried off again. Warrington sipped his scotch and watched her over the rim of his glass. Alicia ignored her own drink and said, "Our sources tell us you aren't even in contact with active Death Eaters. You're quasi-respectable now. Granted, you occasionally pop up to denounce Muggles, but that's just to keep up appearances. You're as clean as a whistle."

He didn't say anything for a while. His gaze swept over her, sending a shiver down her spine. She should just get up and leave. She had better things she could be doing on a Friday night. She was about to stand up when he finally spoke. "You fit in well here. I'm a little surprised that your boyfriend let you go out looking like that."

"I don't have a boyfriend," Alicia said automatically.

"Really? Here I was thinking Oliver Wood had made an honest woman of you."

Every muscle in Alicia's body tensed. She carefully schooled her expression to neutrality. "How do you know about Oliver?"

"Grapevine."

"Grapevine, my arse!" she snapped. "You had me followed!"

Warrington feigned innocence and shock. "Have an Auror followed? Who would dare to be so brazen? Not I, certainly. I have a quasi-respectable, squeaky clean image to uphold."

Alicia almost blurted out something else, but managed to stop herself in time. She was getting nowhere fast. Warrington seemed to be a step ahead of her on all counts. He'd just proven that he still had connections with shady people who dealt in information. Naturally, the assumption would be that it wouldn't be too difficult for him to find out who was re-organising the Death Eaters. She needed time to rethink her plan of attack.

She cleared her throat awkwardly. "Excuse me. I have to go to the ladies'."

Warrington didn't say anything as she stood up and teetered off in search of the ladies' toilets. She followed a sign and entered a sumptuously appointed restroom. Finding it empty, Alicia slumped against one of the sinks and struggled to gather her composure.

What would Tonks do if she were here? Alicia asked herself. Apart from yelling at me for being stupid, she'd probably gather as much information about the subject as she could.

Armed with a plan now, she relaxed a little. That was all she had to do. Discover why he was willing to risk giving her this information then assess the likelihood of it being credible. Simple enough in theory, but Warrington was clever and cunning. He wasn't about to give anything up without getting something in return.

Alicia readjusted her top so that it hung slightly off one shoulder and showed more cleavage. She could probably try to seduce the information out of him. Tonks was always extorting the values of femininity in their line of work. Then again, Tonks could change her appearance at will. What did Alicia have that would tempt someone like Warrington? Unless he was one of those guys who wasn't picky. She'd known enough of those in her time.

If for some reason he did want sex in exchange for the information, Alicia would have no choice but to do it. An Auror's life was one of sacrifice, after all. If it came down to it she'd have to take one for the team. She'd have to grit her teeth as he had his way her. Once. Twice. Three times…oh crap.

Alicia winced and turned on the cold water. She splashed her cheeks and neck and tried to think about everything but sex. She was on an important Auror assignment. There wasn't anytime for ridiculous, misguided fantasies. If they were done by midnight she'd drop around to Oliver's house. That would put an end to any thoughts of ex-Slytherins.

After double-checking her appearance, Alicia left the bathroom and wandered leisurely back to Warrington's corner of the club. The man himself was waiting patiently, swirling his scotch around in a way that Alicia found oddly arousing.

_Business_, she told herself firmly. She sat back down and crossed her legs primly. "Let's get to the point. What do you want in exchange for the name?"

"Your strap seems to have slipped." Warrington reached across and lifted the strap of her top back onto her shoulder. He deliberately ran his fingertips along her collarbone.

Alicia bit the inside of her cheek. Collarbones weren't erogenous zones. Slytherins weren't sexy. "Don't touch me," she hissed.

"So you aren't dating Wood then?" he asked, seeming genuinely interested.

"That is none of your business."

"No need to get defensive. I naturally assumed that you'd be dating the man who is seen leaving your flat at all hours of the morning."

"Seen by who exactly?" she demanded.

Warrington shrugged his broad shoulders. "An associate who happened to be walking by your flat at exactly five last Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday mornings."

Alicia bristled at the invasion of privacy. "How dare you have me watched!"

"You and your Auror buddies don't have any qualms about doing it to other people. Turnabout's fair play."

"We follow _criminals_."

"I'm not a criminal and I had to put up with your mate Shacklebolt tailing me everywhere. I only had you watched to make sure that you were worth approaching with my information." He sipped his scotch again and watched her through hooded eyes. "What's the deal with Wood then?"

"Nothing. We see each other occasionally and that's it," Alicia said, fighting an urge to blush.

Warrington laughed. It was a harsh, barking sound, which made her jump. "The little Gryff has a shag buddy," he said, obviously amused by the news.

"Shut your mouth," she snarled. "What Oliver and I do in our spare time is none of your business."

"Is he a squealer? He seems like he would be. What's his kink?"

Alicia slipped her hand into her bag and grasped hold of her wand. "This is your curtesy warning. You will get one and only one so listen carefully. If you say one more thing about Oliver I will hit you with seventeen hexes in thirty seconds. That's my record and I'm always happy to practice so I can improve on it."

Warrington's hand was on her wrist in the blink of an eye. "Cute. You almost pulled it off, too. You're playing with the big boys now, Spinnet, so you'll have to do better than that. If you so much as think about moving I'll tighten my grip and you'll hear the cracks. There are so many thin bones in your hand that I could snap like toothpicks."

To her credit, Alicia did not flinch, blink or wince. "You think you can frighten me? I'm not like I was at Hogwarts. You can't sneer at me and expect me to run away crying. I've dealt with much worse than you."

"Well, it looks like neither of us is going to back down. I'll let go of you if you promise to play nice from now on. That means you speak politely to me and keep the half-hearted threats to a minimum."

"Fine," Alicia agreed. "I'll let go of my wand if you refrain from mentioning Oliver again."

"God, grow up. So what if you're doing your old Quidditch captain? Just admit to it and move on."

"No one is meant to know about it. I'd have no problem admitting to it if our lives weren't so complicated. Oliver and I have public images to protect and neither of us has time for a real relationship."

Warrington nodded. "So it's a matter of convenience. I wouldn't expect it from you, but there's nothing wrong with such an arrangement."

"I was in Gryffindor so I must be asexual? I _choose_ not to jump anything that walks, like is the custom for your housemates," she said tartly.

He released her wrist and smirked. "That's not how Terrance Higgs tells it."

"That was once! It was a Ministry Christmas party and we were both bored and drunk. It didn't-" Alicia shook her head and put her hand over her eyes. "I don't even know why I'm justifying myself to you. I don't care what you think of me."

Warrington sat back and surveyed her thoughtfully. "So why do you have a thing for Slytherin men? Is it the money?"

"Excuse me?" Alicia snapped. This was really getting tired. "I don't have _a thing_ for Slytherin men."

Warrington didn't appear to have heard her. "Perhaps it's your own little form of rebellion. Didn't like your parents as much as everyone thought?"

"I don't have the time or patience for games," she warned tersely.

"Ah, you're a masochist then? You enjoy being insulted and treated like shit by men."

"You know what? Fuck you, Warrington." Alicia put her handbag over her shoulder and got ready to leave.

"On second thoughts that probably isn't it." He tilted his head slightly as he considered her. He snapped his fingers suddenly and raised an eyebrow triumphantly. "You like the danger, don't you? You get off on it. That's why you played Quidditch and became an Auror even when you could have had a cushy Ministry job."

Alicia gritted her teeth and stood up. "It was nice catching up…well, actually it wasn't. You're still an arsehole and you still make me want to vomit. Have a good night."

"Three Aurors were ambushed during a routine patrol in Kent," Warrington said casually. Alicia did not move so he continued. "One of those Aurors was the war veteran Dawlish. At midnight the trio entered an abandoned building, which had once been a known meeting spot for Death Eaters. They were ambushed from behind and above."

There's a leak in the department, Alicia thought immediately. The impossibility of that hit her a second later. The Auror department was airtight and any accidental leak would have surely made its way into the hands of the press, who were constantly sniffing around for any trouble. Warrington had to have got the account from Death Eaters.

"Kindly sit the hell down," he said smoothly. "If you get up again you walk away with nothing. You miss out on your chance to save the world."

Alicia almost threw her bag at his head. She sat back down with a huff and reached for her martini. If things continued like they were, it was going to be a bloody long night. Warrington looked on with an unmistakably smug look on his face.

"Don't look so arrogant and superior," she said. It was time to show him who was boss. "_I_ will always have the upper hand here. At the moment I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt. Bringing down this new bloke would be peachy, but sending one of the Untouchables to Azkaban would be just as satisfying.

"Untouchables?" he queried, seeming genuinely curious.

"That's the term my colleagues and I use to refer to the sons of convicted Death Eaters. That's you, Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, Theodore Nott and a few others. We couldn't make anything stick to you after the war ended so any chance to nail you now would be welcomed."

It was subtle, but Alicia could see that it unsettled him to know that he was still a target. It was her turn to smile smugly. "There's even a reward. First one to have an Untouchable sent to Azkaban gets a month's worth of paid leave. I've been wanting to go somewhere sunny like Hawaii."

"You haven't got enough on me."

"You think so? Well, you're in contact with active Death Eaters, you know who's leading them, you know about the attack on the Aurors. That's three strikes as far as I'm concerned. A Dark Mark would guarantee you a one-way ticket to Azkaban."

Warrington slammed his glass down on the table and undid his cufflinks. He rolled up both of his sleeves and showed her the insides of his forearms. "See? Not so much as a butterfly tattoo. I was never a Death Eater and I never will be one."

"Couldn't cut it with the _big boys_?" Alicia teased.

"Voldemort wanted servants and I do no one's bidding. Besides, my father was a member so if Potter and his band of misfits won I would become the head of the family. What were my mother and sisters going to do if I was convicted as well?"

Alicia hesitated. It was strange to think that Warrington had a family. It was even stranger to think that his family depended on him. His file had mentioned that he had two younger sisters, but Alicia had barely spared them a thought. "You're using them as an excuse. They'd get on fine without you," she said, more to convince herself than to accuse him.

Warrington snorted unpleasantly. "My sisters are silly little bints who haven't done a day of work in their lives and my mother has a bottle of Firewhiskey permanently attached to her lips. They'd be destitute without me."

"I'm surprised you haven't married off your sisters to the highest bidders. I thought that was the Slytherin tradition," she commented.

"Believe me, I tried to get rid of them as soon as they were of age, but no one wants anything to do with them. It doesn't go unnoticed that I'm not a big part of the Death Eaters anymore." Warrington sighed and ran a hand through his short, dark hair. "If I do get involved with them, you and your Auror buddies will be on me in a second. I just want to be able to provide for my family."

Alicia found herself leaning towards him without knowing why. "Do you want out? I could help you completely renounce the Death Eaters."

"But I'm in such a vulnerable position," he said, lowering his gaze to his lap.

"It's all right, I'll help you," she promised as she lightly touched his forearm.

Warrington looked up at her slowly and she shivered. When had they become so close? When had his eyes become so enticingly brown and passionate? Just as she opened her mouth, he seized her in a lip-bruising kiss. She kissed back for a moment before her commonsense resurfaced. She was there to get information and nothing else.

He was too big to push away, so she bit his tongue instead. That sent him reeling back in a split second.

"Fuck! What do you think you're doing?" he demanded angrily.

Alicia wiped at her mouth and scowled. "_Me_? What do you think _you're_ doing?"

"That was a kiss, Spinnet. Jeez, is Wood really that hopeless?"

"Shut up. I didn't give you permission to kiss me. I ought to hex your balls off, you sleaze."

"Excuse me?" he hissed, his voice so low and stern that it made her freeze. "You were completely open to it. Don't try to deny it. That little display of mine brought out the Gryffindor in you. You wanted to pat me on the head and tell me everything would all right, didn't you? Why do you think I even said all of that crap in the first place?"

"More lies," Alicia realised. Internally, she berated herself for being fooled again.

"Of course I was lying! I don't need your reassurance or help. I _definitely_ don't need you for sex."

"Then what the hell am I doing here?" Alicia shouted. Again, control of the situation had slipped out of her hands. This was without a doubt the worst Auror assignment she had ever conducted. It was sloppy, badly planned and basically against the rules.

"You're here because I see something in you that no one else had bothered to see. Even your friends don't notice it. I chose to give the information to you because you're dying for fame and accolades. You want to be the only one to bring down the new leader. You alone want to be known as the heroine of the piece."

"Bullshit," she said weakly.

Warrington shrugged. "Of course you're going to deny it. Selfishness could threaten your status as a card-carrying Gryffindor, right? You've always wanted glory. Years ago I noticed that you always flew point during the Hawkeshead Attacking Formation even though Johnson and Bell were better players. You also took the majority of the penalty shots. Why?"

"I was better at them."

"We both know that's not true. You became an Auror so you could get a piece of what Potter got for defeating Voldemort."

Alicia was shaking slightly. Something in her companion's words had hit a nerve. "So what? Who cares if I get a little attention for ridding the world of evil scum? I'm making the world a better place, not adding to the horrors of it! I'm doing my bit! I'm _not_ a Slytherin!"

"Don't get your red and gold knickers in a twist, little Gryff." Warrington slid a little closer to her again. "I'm not accusing you of anything. I admire that part of you. I like that your intentions aren't always purely honourable. I knew I could trust you with this information."

"Then give me the name."

"What then? You rush off to kill him? What do you think will happen after you get rid of him?" Warrington asked.

"I get an Order of Merlin and my picture in the paper," she replied firmly.

Warrington nodded. "You're the hero…until the next leader appears."

"I'll take him out as well."

Warrington sat back and stared at his empty glass of scotch. Alicia shakily sipped her martini as she waited for him to say something. He looked back over at her with an oddly resolute look on his face. "Have you ever seen a chicken that's just had its head cut off?" he asked seriously.

Alicia wondered briefly if she had blacked out and missed part of the conversation. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"The body still twitches. It's still alive for a moment," he said as his finger ran along the hem of her skirt.

"What are you talking about?"

"You're going about it all wrong!" he barked suddenly.

Alicia jumped and almost wore her martini. "_What_?"

His hand was on her leg now, but she didn't seem to care. "You Aurors have no idea what you're doing. Cutting off the head of the Death Eater movement won't kill them. It's like a hydra. If you cut off one head another two will grow in its place. You need to go for the heart."

Alicia watched his finger trace random patterns on her thigh for a moment. "So where's the heart?" she asked huskily.

"The fanatics. They keep the movement going. The Death Eaters were around before Voldemort and they'll be around as long as there are zealots to latch onto anyone with charisma and rudimentary intelligence. There's a handful of Death Eaters at the core of the group. If you take those few out the entire thing will crumble. Those who are only incidental members will wander back to their normal lives."

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

Warrington leant closer and kissed her neck. "Well, it certainly wouldn't do me any harm if the Death Eaters were to disband."

Alicia tilted her head to give him better access and said, "You want credit for it? I could name you as my source."

"No. My name stays out of it. If I really kick up a stink about the end of the Death Eaters the pure-blood community might look favourably upon me again. They might even start doing business with me again."

"They stopped doing business with you?"

Warrington slid his hands up the side of her shirt slowly. "Of course. They blacklisted me as soon as I made it clear that I wouldn't accept the Dark Mark. The rest of the wizarding world has also vetoed me because of my father. Why do you think I'm here? I've no choice but to do business with Muggles. I'm part-owner of this disgusting hole."

"That explains why everyone calls you Mr Warrington." Alicia closed her eyes briefly. Being felt up by a Slytherin was more enjoyable than she ever thought it could be. "If I gave your name to the press the wizarding world would embrace you. People would be clambering to be seen doing business with you."

"No," he said forcefully, nipping at her shoulder. "Stop trying to redeem me. I'm not a lost little boy who's wandering off the path of Light. I'm where I am because I choose to be there."

"You're practically a Death Eater then." Alicia tried to shove him away but he closed his large hand around her throat.

"Don't make this harder than it has to be."

"It's you! You're organising the Death Eaters!"

Warrington tightened his grip and she gasped for air. "Don't be ridiculous. Have the standards for admittance to Auror training slipped? Always know your enemy, Spinnet. I've taken my time to watch you, study you and get inside your head. You don't know me at all."

"Let go," she rasped.

"If I stay where I am I get the best of both worlds. If I give you the name you have to promise to have me taken off your watch-list. I want you to stop monitoring my assets."

"No." Alicia coughed and fought to keep her mind on the job. The Auror department did not negotiate with criminals. She had to find a way out of the mess she'd got herself into.

"Oh, don't be so quick to dismiss. You haven't heard my part of the deal yet. If you agree to this, I will pass information about the Death Eaters along to you and only you. You could just keep lopping off heads till you retire as the most accomplished Auror since Moody." Warrington finally let go of her neck and she took a deep breath.

Alicia immediately reached beside her for her handbag. It wasn't there. Warrington had it grasped tightly in his hand. "No funny business now. You agree to stop monitoring my assets and I give you the name. Simple enough for you?"

"If we stop monitoring your assets you'll start funding the Death Eaters."

He applauded sarcastically. "Very good. Perhaps you aren't as stupid as you appear. Do we have a deal?"

Alicia folded her arms. "Absolutely not. There's no way I'm going to allow the Death Eaters to receive much needed financial backing. Why do you think we simply had Malfoy's assets frozen from the start? We knew he couldn't be trusted not to divert his money to unsavoury causes."

Warrington's expression turned nasty. Nastier, at least. "I need to give that money to the Death Eaters to get them off my back. A few thousand Galleons every once and a while will be enough to get me back in their good books."

"You're playing both sides against the middle!" Alicia accused loudly. "You're sitting in the middle and not committing to either side. You think you can get away with it? You think I'll just go along with it? You _don't_ know me!"

"Listen, you brainless little bitch. I'd be as broke as Draco right now if I had committed to the Death Eaters when I finished school. The same thing will happen again and I won't let them take me down with them."

"Then join our side!"

Warrington chuckled. "Like I said before, stop trying to redeem me. It won't work. I hate Muggles. Just look at what they've done to the world. Look at their choice of world leaders! They've no idea what they're doing. I will never associate with the side that believes they should be protected."

"You're sitting here talking to me," Alicia pointed out.

"This is a business deal. It's not about morals, allegiances or good and evil."

"It is as far as I'm concerned." Alicia squared her shoulders and looked him straight in the eye. "No deal, Warrington. You can burn in hell with the rest of them."

He shook his head gently. "You don't mean that. You quite like me, don't you? That's why you came here in the first place. You wanted to see me."

She sniffed haughtily and lifted her chin. "You've no idea what you're talking about."

"You let me touch you. I believe you'd let me do a whole lot more to you."

"Never."

"What if I were to change the terms of the deal? We meet once a week at your flat to exchange information and…anything else you might fancy," Warrington said slowly, caressingly.

Alicia rolled her eyes and ignored the coil of warmth that had pooled in her abdomen. "Trust you to whore yourself out like that. Well, I won't have anything to do with it."

Warrington put his hand on her leg. "You're making a huge mistake, my dear. You stand to profit from the deal more than even I do. You get exclusive details first hand about Death Eater plans. More importantly, you get me at your beck and call."

"You'd sleep with a Gryffindor?"

"I'd sleep with _you_," he corrected. "You have a nice little streak of green, Miss Spinnet."

Alicia had no idea what to do. The deal was going to benefit her, but it was also slightly against the rules. Still, she knew that there were Aurors in the department who did less than noble things to achieve their goals. Did the ends justify the means? If she were ultimately going to be able to stay ahead of the Death Eaters would it really matter if she let Warrington give them money?

"I'm going to have to think about it," she told him.

"Fine. The deal comes off the table on Monday."

"I can't even believe I'm going to consider consorting with you. I feel dirty."

"You're not doing anything wrong," he assured her, his voice uncharacteristically comforting. "The world isn't black and white, Alicia. The lines are so blurred that no one is quite sure when they actually cross over. Both of us reside in that hazy middle ground."

"I'm not sure I like it here," she admitted with a shudder.

"Believe me, you'll realise it's the best place to be. No one can touch us and we can keep each other company."

Alicia closed her eyes as he leant in to kiss her. It wasn't as forceful as the other one, but it wasn't gentle either. She moaned into his mouth and let him push her back against the sofa. She lost herself to his talented mouth and hands for a while. He was a lot better at it than Higgs had been. Better than Oliver, even. Oh. She had completely forgotten about Oliver.

She wrenched her mouth away from his. "Warrington?"

"Don't you ever know when to shut up?" he muttered against her cheek.

"Get off me. I have to go."

With a groan he withdrew and helped her sit up. "I expect your answer in the next couple of days."

"You'll get it. Can I have my bag now?"

He handed it back to her and she quickly checked that her wand was still in there. Warrington smirked. "Don't you trust me?"

"Not particularly."

"Smart girl."

Alicia stood up and straightened her skirt. "Do I have your assurance that this meeting won't be mentioned to anyone?"

"As if I'd ever admit to snogging a Gryffindor in a Muggle nightclub. I could kiss my reputation goodbye forever."

She downed the last of her martini in one gulp. "Good. Have a nice night."

"You, too. Tell Wood I said hello."

Alicia raised her eyebrows coyly and twisted the toothpick from her drink between her fingers. "Tell Bethany I said it was nice meeting her."

Warrington settled back and looked her up and down appreciatively. "I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful partnership."

She seized the olive between her teeth and drew it off the toothpick slowly. "Don't get your hopes up."

Alicia dropped the toothpick back into the empty glass and placed it on the table. She turned and walked away, exaggerating the sway of her hips. That meeting definitely hadn't gone how she had expected it to. She wouldn't say it had been a complete failure, though.

In the end she didn't need till Monday. Before she even got out of the club she had made her decision. It was too much of a good opportunity to pass up. Even without the added incentive of his weekly visits, she'd be crazy to decline.

If things did start to get boring or the information proved to be useless, she'd at least have an Untouchable in her bed. She could tell that he wanted her as much as she wanted him. That fact could definitely come in handy.

Alicia smiled to herself as she ducked into a quiet alley to Apparate to Oliver's. A month in Hawaii did sound very pleasant.

_Whispers like clouds of aimless particles_

_which one day could form something solid,_

_whisper and the slight reverberation_

_of planets softly colliding,_

_showering each other with dust,_

_which they have been trying to avoid,_

_hoping for a poem about something greener._

_-'When Planets Softly Collide', Jill Jones._


End file.
